Path of Dragons

Elijah stepped into the maze, looking both directions before picking one. The others followed close on his heels, though they seemed far more anxious than he felt. It wasn’t surprising, either. To them, the notion of traveling through the endless twisting halls was a daunting prospect. But to Elijah, it felt like a casual stroll, largely because he could see all the gaps in the system of corridors.

Unfortunately, every wall was not illusory. Instead, it resembled a normal maze, but with hidden paths concealed by the not-quite-real portions. Interestingly, he sensed that someone could make it through the maze without taking advantage of the easier hidden path, but it would be much more time-consuming and far more difficult.

Especially considering that the maze was not deserted.

There were creatures in there, many of them feeling powerful enough to give even Elijah trouble. They weren’t overly large, and though they were humanoid, they clearly weren’t people, either. Elijah only got a few glimpses of them via Soul of the Wild, but even those were enough to tell him that he didn’t want to engage. He felt confident that, together, they could defeat the creatures – each of which felt oddly shiny – but without knowing their nature, he didn’t want to chance it. That was especially true, given that he had an alternative.

So, he led his companions through the maze, walking through semi-illusory walls throughout the process. Some handled it better than others. Gideon, particularly, had difficulty believing he could make it, but after the first one, he got a little better at it. After the first hour, no member of the party even hesitated.

Gradually, they progressed, using Elijah’s senses to guide them in the proper direction. It brought back memories of the first maze he’d ever conquered, but instead of weathered ruins that were slowly being overtaken by the local flora – as had been the case back in the first tower – this newest incarnation of a maze was much more contained and better maintained. The walls were pristine, and the ceiling prevented Elijah from even considering bypassing the sprawling corridors.

And there were no root raptors or sasquatch men to harass him, which made things a bit less nerve-wracking. It did come with a sense of nostalgia, though. Perhaps he would return to the tower sometime just for old time’s sake. It wouldn’t give him much in the way of experience or rewards – not after having run it multiple times – but he couldn’t help but remember the whole experience with a fondness that probably didn’t reflect the reality of his experience.

After all, he’d barely survived the place. Wanting to go back probably represented a serious flaw in his judgement as well as a healthy dose of trauma coping mechanisms.

Elijah’s mind wandered through his memories as they progressed, and after two more hours, they finally reached the end of the maze. Predictably, it was not unguarded.

It was the first time Elijah had seen one of the creatures guarding the maze, but its appearance matched what he’d felt with Soul of the Wild. That was to say that, as he’d already come to realize, it was shiny. Very, very shiny. In fact, the entire thing looked like it was made of mirror shards, many of which were incredibly sharp.

The second it laid eyes on Elijah and his companions, who’d just emerged from the final hall and into a large, open room decorated with hundreds of mirrors, it let out a grating scream. It sounded like shattering glass, and it cut through Elijah’s defenses. He fell to his knees, clutching his suddenly bleeding ears, as his mind went blank.

Then, suddenly, the scream ended in a pained wail. When Elijah’s mind cleared, he looked up to see Dat standing behind the collapsed creature, his shortsword in hand. The blade dripped with clear and glittering blood.

“What was that?” rasped a panicked and pained Zhang Yue.

“That was one of the things we’ve been avoiding by taking the shortcuts,” Elijah answered, already having cast Blessing of the Grove to heal everyone. The damage was far more extensive than the few seconds of exposure would have suggested, but thankfully, none of it was permanent. After only a few seconds, they were all healed. Pointedly, Nico hadn’t bothered, preferring instead to save his ethera for an emergency.

Elijah hated that about the Healer. He was perfectly okay with letting people suffer on the off chance that he might need to respond to some hypothetical threat. Elijah understood it, but that didn’t mean he had to like it.

“Did you use your Miracle?” asked Sadie when they joined Dat.

The Witch Hunter nodded. “Curse of Scrying told me it was the only way,” Dat answered. Then, he went on to explain that the monster – called a mirror fiend – only had one vulnerable spot. Hitting it anywhere else would result in a reflected attack, making it a truly dangerous foe.

Could Elijah stand up to his own spells? Perhaps with the help of his heals, but he didn’t like the idea.

“Well, good thing we have you, then,” Elijah said, gripping his friend’s shoulder. Dat’s muscles were tense, suggesting an abnormal level of anxiety. He still hadn’t calmed from confronting Gideon. “You know, when this is all finished, why don’t you come back to the grove with me? You could use a vacation.” He glanced at Sadie and added, “You’re invited too, obviously.”

She nodded, though under her breath, she muttered, “Glad to be an afterthought.”

Elijah felt certain that he wasn’t intended to hear that part, but his senses had grown far more potent since he’d progressed his cultivation to the Expert tier. Despite wanting to point out that he’d already invited Sadie to the island on multiple occasions, he chose to keep his mouth shut.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Instead, he and the others approached the mirror fiend’s body, finding nothing of note. Zhang Yue, whose class included some ability to harvest creatures, settled in to remove its mirror shards, saying, “These might be valuable to crafters.”

While the Explorer went to work, Elijah and the others approached a pedestal at the center of the room. To his surprise, when he touched it, he received a notification informing him that they’d received the Blessing of Cunning, completing the set necessary to enter the Primal Realm on Dragon Tiger Mountain.

“That was a little easier than expected,” he remarked. “It feels almost like we cheated this one.”

“It came with a high cost,” Dat admitted. “I won’t have the Miracle available for a while.”

Elijah shrugged. “We’ll be fine. You thought it was necessary, and I trust your judgement.”

Clearly, that sentiment was not universal, and as they retraced their steps through the maze, Elijah witnessed glares from both Nico and Gideon. Neither had shown any particular attachment to Dat, but it was obvious that they believed he’d erroneously used one of their most potent weapons.

It didn’t take long to exit the maze, and soon enough, they were back in Hong Kong and trekking through the city. As twilight descended, they chose to find a place to camp until morning. Elijah had no issues traveling in darkness, but even he had to admit that it was far more dangerous after the sun set. So, before long, they found a defensible building and settled in.

Only an hour into the night, Elijah heard a whispered conversation between Nico and Gideon. They were on the other side of the building and in another room, but so long as he focused on his enhanced senses as well as Soul of the Wild, Elijah could hear them clearly enough to know what they were saying.

“He’s never been smart,” Nico hissed. “We can’t control him.”

“He’s not the only one we can’t control,” Gideon agreed, clearly believing they were too far away to be heard. “The Druid is a wildcard, and he’s affecting your sister’s demeanor. She defers to his judgement. I don’t need to remind you why that is a problem. If we lose her…”

“We won’t. She’s on our side.”

“You’re sure about that?”

Gideon answered, “She would never go against Tianwei’s wishes.”

“And what about after? The old man won’t live forever. He has no talent for cultivation, and he’s too weak to fight. He should not have chosen the Warrior archetype,” Nico stated. “It was shortsighted, and it’ll be the death of him. Sooner rather than later.”

“You have plans?” asked Gideon.

Nico shook his head. “No. Not yet. But the day is coming when we will need to make some tough choices,” he answered. “I hope I can count on your support.”

Gideon bowed his head. “You are the future of Heaven’s Bastion. We all know it.”

After that, the pair fell silent. Elijah questioned whether or not he should get involved. He wasn’t familiar enough with the situation in Heaven’s Bastion to know if deposing Tianwei was a good idea. He wasn’t even sure if that was what had been suggested. The man was old, and if he couldn’t fight, then he wouldn’t last much longer. By comparison, Nico would likely live for at least another century. More if he’d worked on his Regeneration and Constitution.

Or if he reached ascension.

Elijah knew that life spans varied across the multi-verse. By this point, his own longevity would probably be measured in centuries – perhaps more than a millennia – but he knew that he wasn’t really representative of the norm. It depended on cultivation, attributes, race, and overall level, which made exact estimates hard to come by.

Regardless, if Nico wanted it, he was probably the logical choice to take over. The only fly in the ointment was Sadie, and Elijah suspected that she had no intentions of ruling anyone but herself. It just wasn’t part of her personality.

Still, the fact that Gideon supported Nico left a bad taste in Elijah’s mouth.

Not that he was going to intervene, save to offer a warning to Sadie. That would have to wait, though, because it wasn’t long before Nico and Gideon returned to the main room and settled down to sleep.

Elijah and Dat remained awake, watching for any threats. The Witch Hunter remained apart from everyone else, though, clearly wanting time to himself.

Soon enough, Sadie joined Elijah, who sat with his back against one of the walls.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked.

She shook her head.

“Follow me,” he said, pushing himself to his feet.

“We need to keep watch,” she pointed out.

“I can feel everything in this building. If something comes, I’ll know. Come on,” he responded, extending his hand. She took it, rising to her feet. He didn’t want to let it go, and to his surprise, neither did she. So, he kept his grip as he led her to a stairwell in the back of the room. As they climbed, butterflies danced in Elijah’s stomach. He’d only intended to tell her what he’d learned from the overheard conversation between Gideon and Nico, but somehow, it had become something else.

Something far more personal.

Elijah could feel it in the air, almost like a thunderstorm was brewing.

Soon enough, they reached the roof and sat on the edge. With their legs dangling, Elijah desperately wished he could talk about anything else, but he felt obligated to say, “I think your brother and Gideon intend to depose your grandfather. I overheard them talking about –”

“I know.”

“What?”

“It’s been building for a while. I’d hoped to dissuade him, but with me being gone for so long…he’s been listening to all the wrong people,” she admitted. “I don’t think I have any chance of pushing him in another direction. And honestly, I don’t know if I want to. My grandfather is a great man. Even before the world changed, he was powerful. But he was never a good person. Maybe that’s what we needed, but…I don’t know how long it can last. Nico might not be any better, either.”

“You could take over,” Elijah suggested.

She shook her head, responding, “Not a chance. I have no interest in leadership.”

Elijah felt the same way, but what’s more, he wasn’t sure Sadie would be any better. He liked her – especially since she’d developed an ability to control her spells – but he was under no illusion that she would make a good leader. She was far too rigid for that kind of role.

But as much as Elijah often lamented his lack of social skills, he knew enough not to give voice to that assessment. Instead, he changed the subject, saying, “You know you’re still invited to my island, right? Once this is all finished, I mean.”

“Because you think it would be good for me?” she asked, turning to look at him. The moonlight played across her features, and Elijah’s breath caught in his chest. “Or is it because you want me there?”

“The latter. I think –”

She leaned in, and before he knew what was happening, her lips were on his. Once he got over the shock of her actions, he leaned into it, pulling her closer.

When they finally broke away, his heart was beating out of his chest. She gave him a small smile, which he returned. “I’ve wanted to do that for a while,” she admitted. Glancing around, she added, “But I don’t think this is the best place to continue.”

“You’re right.”

Then, they kissed again, this time far more passionately.

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